Somebody's Nobody
by Monkey Typewriter
Summary: Xanthan is a Nobody. A Nothing. He rediscovers his former world, and joins its protectors, his former friends, assuming the guise of his Somebody, and trying to keep this world from Darkness while he struggles to uncover his memory, and tries to stop his returning Somebody from destroying his near-life. OC centered story Send me OCs and I may include as I go. Reviews please. R R
1. Nothing Awakes

My eyes opened, but the world around me was no less dark. I didn't care. I simply put my feet under me. My toes wriggled in the sand without my telling them to. It must've been muscle memory. I must have done this before. Strange, because I didn't have any true memories. No faces smiling at me from my past, no familiar places or actions. The only familiar thing was the weight in my hand.

I looked down at the sword. I didn't understand how I was able to see it, but I was not surprised. I wasn't anything. I was nothing. Nobody.

But the sword seemed to have an identity. It was gleaming silver, reflecting light that didn't exist. I suppose it brought its own Light to this place of Darkness. It was three feet long, looking solid without being overtly thick. It came to a deadly point, the sword widening a bit, then thinning back out, and finally getting wider again at the base.

There was an emblem where the blade met the hilt. It was white, and came to several points, the bottom of it looking like an inverted heart with chunks taken out of it. It evoked a feeling of Nothingness, which wasn't even a true feeling. More a state of being.

My hand tingled holding it, and I gave it a few practice swings through the air. It was instinctual. Second nature. I held the sword with ease, and handled it efficiently enough, without having anything to judge it against.

I heard something then. The sand shifting, the faint whistle of the air being cut, as if by several small knives, and I whipped around, bringing the sword up and through where I knew the thing would be, judging by the sound it made. An easy smirk came to my face as it disappeared in a black cloud, only visible because it was both blacker, as well as purple, against the black around me.

Then the mist dissipated, and something else took form. A pink heart coalesced, shining through the darkness. It illuminated the place, and I saw the obsidian sand, the far off shore, and the black stone spires that jutted out in random places. I looked up at the Heart, reaching for it as it spiraled away, up into the air, and winked away, leaving this realm of darkness, as the light it brought slowly faded away.

My left hand found where my heart was. Where it should have been. I dropped to my knees, something stirring inside of me. I wanted the Heart. I wanted it for my own. I was instantly obsessed. I needed it. Why did I not have it?

I looked down, and in the ever dimming light from the Heart, I saw what I was wearing. Dark robes, as black as the far off Darkness, and black leather gloves. I shook my head, standing up, as the longing dimmed with the light.

It didn't make sense. It was irrational. Why did I want it?

"Because it will make you whole, Xanthan." The voice was old, and when I turned, the speaker matched. He strode towards me, hunching forward, hands clasped behind his back. I raised the sword in a defensive stance, not threatening the man, but not letting him get the drop on me.

I froze, thinking. Is Xanthan my name? It must be. I shrugged at it, entirely apathetic. It would suffice.

"You are incomplete, boy. A Nobody. Nothing but an empty vessel, missing its Heart. You have no feelings, no emotions, and no plans." He sounded confident of this, and continued, his voice seeming strong, and gruff. "I can give you these things," he asserted, and I raised an eyebrow. My wanting the Heart had faded, and we were two beings, standing in pure darkness. I saw him, and heard him slowly shuffling through the sand.

"My wanting of a Heart seems to have faded," I told him. "Will I want it again, next time I come into contact with it?"

He smiled, looking sympathetic as he examined me, "Yes. There are hundreds of thousands of Hearts, scattered throughout the worlds. And you will want every one of them."

I nodded. "May I have a Heart, then? It seems irrational to search for one when you're offering one to me now."

He chuckled, and coughed, nodding. He flexed his hand away from him, and a black and blue key appeared in his hand, as long as my sword, and he stabbed himself in the heart. "I offer you my own heart," he said as it appeared before him, slowly fluttering towards me. I reached for it…

But I still felt empty. I pulled away. "You lied," I told him plainly, not angry. I wasn't anything. "I don't want it." His face screwed up in anger, and the heart rushed back to him.

"Another failure… another broken vessel," he murmured. He shook his head as he turned from me, muttering about thirteen and seven, and Keyblades, and a wasted strike on Radiant Garden. He shuffled away, and his large key, a Keyblade, I presumed, disappeared. He waved a hand, shouted over his shoulder, "Dispose of him!" And then he was gone, fading into the Darkness.

I heard shuffling feet behind me, and I turned to see countless monstrosities. Almost all of them had glowing, yellow eyes. Most were hard to distinguish from the blackness, mere silhouettes against more blackness, and without seeing their eyes, I wouldn't know if anything was there, or just my imagination. If I had any of that. Some were small, though most were the size of a man or larger. Many had claws, others had swords, and still others floated, seemingly harmless. But I knew that they were all here to 'dispose' of me.

I readied my sword as the horde charged.

I slashed through the first wave easily, but as I whirled, spun, slashed, and struck, the mist around me grew, and I was distracted as many sent Hearts skyward, illuminating the monsters further. I WANTED them. But I also wanted to continue existing, if I could call it that.

Eventually though, I was overwhelmed. My sword was batted away from me, and I felt myself begin to fade, being away from it. It only got worse as the Heartless slashed at me, and grey mist began to leak from my body in all the places I was cut.

I closed my eyes, not-quite hoping for a way out, even as the desire for a Heart pounded at me. Then I felt an odd sensation as the sword returned to my hands, and I fell through the ground, landing on something hard.

* * *

AN: Restarting former story. I was unsatisfied with it, and found that there was a chapter missing, so, rather than simply rewrite a chapter, rebooting it. Please review and comment on it, as this is a labor of love. I grew up with these games, and always thought that Nobodies were really cool.

If you're comfortable with your OCs being used by other authors, feel free to submit them through reviews of this. I make no promises as to including them, and will only do so if I feel it will improve the story, and fits with my story.

My updating will likely be sporadic and based on my mood/availabilty. That said, I will try to update at least once every two weeks, and will try to do it once a week.

Christ, big author's note. Happy FanFic-ing!


	2. Dive to the Husk

I opened my eyes, and they were assaulted by the light. The floor was a well illuminated stained glass window, and I climbed to my feet. My robes showed no evidence of tearing, and the creatures were nowhere to be seen.

The floor held the same symbol as my sword did, and it seemed to take up the entire floor. The floor seemed to be a raised platform, and there was an infinite darkness around us. Was I still in that realm of darkness? No. This place is too different.

"A Broken Vessel," I heard the old man assert. His voice came from everywhere and nowhere. "You were a waste of time and resources," the voice asserted, " It takes a long time to gather the Heartless needed to assault a world as well defended as Radiant Garden. And to make the Heartless target Nathan… it's like trying to make a stampede run a certain way."

"Where am I?" I demanded. Demanded may be too strong a word. I was loud, and I asked the question, but there was no anger. I sounded like I felt. Indifferent.

"You aren't in a place," the voice insisted. "You're in Nathan's Heart. Or what's left of it. His Heart is fading now. Engulfed by the Darkness. You're a byproduct of this. A rather unfortunate byproduct that the Heartless should have destroyed by now."

"Whatever." I walked to the center of the large symbol in the floor. The glass below me wasn't truly stained grey, it must've been a mirror, as it reflected me. I crouched down to look closer at my reflection.

I looked athletic. Skinny, fit. My hair was black, and spiked in every conceivable direction in such a way that it looked like it was fighting itself. I combed a gloved hand through it out of habit, forcing the hair to point up, rather than everywhere. My face was slim, and young. I wouldn't say that I was any older than eighteen. My eyes were a piercing blue. They looked blank, empty. I got the idea that most would find this somewhat unsettling.

Then there was something in my reflection's eyes. They seemed to dart around the room. "Finally," the voice said. "I was worried that my effort was for naught." I looked closer, dropping to one knee as I squinted at my reflection.

My reflection flashed me a smile. It was unexpected, but not surprising. He reached a hand through the mirror. Shrugging my shoulders, uncaring, I gave him my hand and dragged him through.

"Thanks," he muttered with a wicked smile, eyes darting around the place. His eyes were now full of emotion, and I could tell, at a glance, that he was searching for something. "Boy," he shouted, "This place looks DULL!" It echoed in the darkness around us, and I couldn't do much but shrug again. The Me before me turned around, and stalked towards me. "You're dull too." He frowned. "I don't like dull."

The room shook, and a thunder filled the room, that I soon identified as the old man's laughter. "Yes. I know you, Nathan. You cannot stand the dull, the drab, the ordinary… you're a man of action. Of passion. So here is my deal for _you._ Do you see the man beside you? The one that looks like you?"

"YES!" He shouted, cupping his hands. "WHAT ABOUT HIM!?"

"I can promise you an exciting time. A few fights, and more importantly, many victories. I need you to do one thing for me first."

"OK! WHAT IS IT!?"

"Kill him."

I turned to study the other Me. I seemed to be weighing my options. Eventually, he seemed to be settling on a decision. He turned to look at me. "Sorry handsome, but the big guy in the sky wants you gone."

I nodded, summoning my sword. It came in a flash of light, appearing in my hand. He held out his own hand, and a cloud of darkness appeared, and coalesced into a sword. The blade was the same as mine, but is was pure black, and seemed to hum with energy. Instead of the symbol on my sword, it held a symbol that looked to me like a Heart, with a large X running through the middle.

He made the first move, swinging his sword down in a powerful arc that I blocked easily enough. I swung back, slashing at his gut, but he too parried it. I heard the rumbling laughter again as the floor shook, and we fought, slowly picking up the tempo, slashing and stabbing at a feverish pace. His face contorted in anger with every strike I blocked, and morphed into a mask of triumph whenever he blocked one of mine.

I remained emotionless. Emotion would likely get in the way.

I was aware of the floor changing. Half of the emblem that I was used too remained, and half of it was now gone, replaced by half of the symbol on his sword. A line of pure blackness separated the two, and it seemed to be wavering, drifting one way and then the other.

I was distracted suddenly, though. A flurry of blows caught me off guard, as they were more ferocious and powerful than I'd been led to believe Nathan was capable of. A dark aura surrounded him, and I heard more chuckling from the old man. I ignored all of this, and I responded in kind, striking at him harder and faster, pushing him back to the edge of the platform.

In a last ditch effort, he tried to run me through, but I batted the blade aside, and it spiraled away into the blackness. Nathan shrugged, and turned to me, slowly bringing his hands up in a motion of surrender. "So," he said conversationally, as if trying to segue from a conversation on sports to one of specific teams, or from a movie to a similar television show, "What's your name?"

"Xanthan, I suppose," I responded, bringing the point of my sword to his throat. He nodded.

"Cool, cool. Is that with an X, or with a Z?" I shrugged, and he said to himself "X sounds cooler." He turned around, leaning towards the pit, and whistled. He turned back to me, jamming a thumb at the blackness behind him. "Wouldn't want to fall in there." I shrugged again.

"Should I kill you?" I asked him, not quite curious, but uninformed on how this sort of thing went as far as procedure.

Then it was his turn to shrug, and he said happily, "Probably. But not if you want to hear about _her._"

"Who?" I asked, genuinely confused. He chuckled, and shook his head.

"Guess I was right. You don't remember being part of me."

"If I heard right," I explained calmly, "I'm the body and mind of what used to be Nathan, and in accordance with that info, you are simply the Heart and emotions."

"Yes but no. You're my body and mind, but I'm _all _me. I got my Heart back, and I'm all me. More than you'll ever be."

"It didn't help," I observed, and his face contorted in rage.

"No," he conceded, "but at least I remember Rylee."

I immediately doubled over from the pain, my head pounding, trying to reach info that just didn't exist. But somehow it succeeded. I got a faint, fuzzy image. A head of red hair, green eyes smiling at me, and-

I coughed up blood, and glanced down at the obsidian blade in my gut. It didn't hurt, but I knew it was there. It was like an error message being sent to my brain. I saw a gray mist begin to leak from the hole as Nathan leaned in to me, smiling, and whispered, "It looks like I win. I guess being whole_ did_ help me win!"

I tried to respond, but could only cough blood into his face, he grumbled a 'gross' and tried to wipe it away, walking around me as I closed my eyes, falling backward…

* * *

**AN:** Hey, probably won't be another post until at least the end of April, as I'm going to try and late-enter into NaNoWriMo. But here's another decent chapter, I think.


	3. Regulations- Nothing's Orders

AN: Perhaps I should've been more clear with the OCs…

I need a physical description. A DETAILED physical description. As in what they usually wear, skin tone, hair color, eye color, their sense of style, etc. If you say that this OC is a Nobody, I will assume Organization cloak, black boots and gloves, and take any liberties I see fit if the description isn't satisfactory enough in detail

I need a spark-notes biography, or an idea of what you would like it to be (A history of your characters for someone who's just met him/her), or a statement that whatever I think up is fine.

I need a description of what weapon(s) and abilities they have at their disposal, and anything they use to their advantage in a fight (strength, speed, magic, control of (a) specific element(s),) anything. A description of their usual style of fighting would be helpful as well.

I need a statement of what exactly they are, (Heartless, Nobody, Somebody, One-Eyed, One Horned, Flying Purple People Eater, Etc…) In the case of Nobodies, their Somebody's name would be appreciated.

I need a description of their usual moods, antics, and thoughts, or in the case of (a) Nobody/(ies) I need any habits they or their Somebody have formed, and if they fake emotion, and if so, how much.

And finally, I need you to understand that a submission will not guarantee your OC's feature in my story, because as much as I'm writing this for others to read, I'm writing it even more so for my own enjoyment and experience. I need you to understand that I will not come after you, pulling teeth to understand exactly what your OC is like. If you don't meet or exceed these expectations, I may very well invent things about your OC if I choose him/her, and more likely, I won't choose him/her at all. I need you to calmly react if I write your OC in a way that you dislike. And most of all, I need you all to understand that if I do feature an OC, it may very well be for one-off purposes. For all I know, they could be introduced one paragraph and killed the next. I need you all to acknowledge this going into the story, and only submit if you're okay with this.

All of that said, I would still like a wide variety of OCs to look at, so submit if you have any desire whatsoever to. Let's have some fun with this, okay guys?

P.S.- Please don't submit if your OC isn't an original Original Character. I will overlook some similarities, but if a character looks like Axel, acts like Axel, walks and talks like Axel, why would I not just use Axel instead?

P.P.S.- You thought this was just a letter, from me to you, like it says? Wrong! Under this letter, buried deep, _DEEP _down in this letter, is an Actual Chapter! Well, a small one. Like, REALLY small.

* * *

I awoke with a start, feeling emptier. I recognized the unending Darkness immediately. I wasn't happy or relieved that I was whole, but I realized I preferred existence to non-existence. This way, at least, I had a chance of eventually becoming whole. I briefly wondered if the hallucination, or dream, or vision, whatever it was, had any importance. I decided that it probably did, and promptly decided to ignore it.

I heard a faint rustling behind me, and turned around quickly, my cloak whipping through the air. My sword appeared in my hand, as I brought it down and-

I stopped, barely an inch from the thing's head. It bore the crest that my sword did. My crest, I began to think of it. Its head was bulbous, and had no eyes, but I had no doubt in my mind that it could see and hear me. It regarded me carefully, as its mouth unzipped, and it seemed to swim through the air as it circled around me.

"My liege," I felt from it, knowing it was speaking, but not hearing it. Its voice felt private, unspoken, as if no one could hear it if it didn't want them to, and it came in time with a fanged mouth that moved behind the zipper, moving in time with the words. I didn't even wonder at the thing's fealty to me, knowing somehow that it was natural. "What are you doing here?"

I shrugged, fiddling with the zipper of my cloak. I brought it all the way up, and flipped my hood over my face, unsure how I should wear it. "I don't know," I responded blandly. "Is there somewhere specific that I should be?"

"Not here. There are too many Heartless here for us to defeat. We lost almost all of our number trying to save you from the ones killing you." The voice didn't feel sad about this, simply stating a fact. I nodded, thinking that a small army of these could be useful, and that it was too bad they had been decimated.

"Then you have my thanks. Tell any of your kind to flee this realm however they can, and to regroup. Tell them to defend each other, and to avoid confrontation that they cannot win. We will gather one day, and then they will not dare to attack us." The commands flowed from me naturally, as if I was used to giving them. He nodded, and before departing, said one more thing.

"They are not my brethren, my liege, but our brethren. And we have been too long without a leader. We will meet you when we have gathered." He waved an arm, which came to a deadly point at the end, able to cut and slash, despite its ability to bend and reshape itself. A portal of pure darkness appeared, almost hidden in the eternal night, and only visible to me when the Nobody slid behind it, floating easily through the air. I nodded to it as it floated away in its random and jerky, yet seemingly smooth and practiced way.

I walked into the portal, and after squinted at the sudden light, which seemed to come at me from all directions.


	4. Nothing's Return

**AN: I swear, this'll be quick.**

**I'm back, having quit Camp NaNoWriMo. Twenty days in is NOT the place to start a 50000 word book. So, I have some quick updates on OC submissions, and then onto the story. Yes, I swear, this time WILL be quick.**

**First, if you are submitting OCs, please keep it original. And also, please DO NOT tell me that they have a Keyblade. If they do, they will almost certainly not be featured, as Keyblades are getting too numerous in canon as is (in my opinion) and I'm already planning on adding one or two of my own Keyblade Wielders. Give them a simple, versatile weapon, or something incredibly complex. Whatever you want. But Keyblades are a bit of a no-no.**

**I will ONLY include OC characters with an interesting background that isn't heavy on interactions with major canon characters. There will be no Brides of Riku here. And I MIGHT, MAYBE** _**POSSIBLY **_**include one or two ****with Keyblades, but only if they're really good, stand out at me, and won't be a hindrance on the story I'm trying to tell. But Probs Not.**

**If you missed the last chapter, I don't blame you. It was small, and buried under my submission rules. All the same, I advise you to go back and read it. It's semi-important!**

**You have Lord Sweater to thank (or blame) for my return. Reading his incredible Har- sorry, Hadrian Potter FF got me jealous. I'd advise you to check him out and read it.**

**So, without further ado, let's get back to Xanthan and wherever he's going next, shall we? It's a little long, to make up for the stub I gave you last week.**

* * *

I blinked, my eyes adjusting to the sudden light, even with my hood shielding me a little. My whole body tingled slightly after traveling through the oval shaped, obsidian portal. My skin felt stripped raw, almost as if the Darkness had begun trying to consume me, but hadn't progressed nearly far enough to end me.

I look around the town that I found myself in, and shake my head under my hood at the contrast. This place seemed as far from that place of utter Darkness as anything could. Where the realm of darkness and shadows was endless, and unforgiving, bland but for its monstrous inhabitants and spires of stone, I could easily see from my place atop a brown, tiled roof that this place was vibrant, and full of life, even in the small darkness that this world had, its night seeming far more blue than black, aided by the contrast of my previous location, as well as by the moon and street-lamps.

People entered and exited buildings, carrying whatever they'd bought from one shop to the next, or bartering in different stalls. Some seemed to be selling some items of all shapes and sizes, while others seemed specialized in certain crafts. The places that were selling weapons, healing poultices, and magical defenses seemed to be doing the best, by far, but people navigated the bazaar with ease.

The city had its blemishes, though, as I saw from my vantage point from on high. Whole areas appeared as if a demolition crew had done half their job, and a winding, rocky path outside the walls of the city, near to some major holes and craters in the thick, protective wall feature by far the most pock-marked landscape, and a few things glinted at me in the moonlight in the distance.

A warm breeze brought the sound of metal clanging on metal, and a smile to my face as I smelled the flowers. Rylee would love-…

I froze, going absolutely rigid, my eyes shutting of their own will and refusing to open. I began to convulse as I saw the fuzzy images flash before my eyes. A shock of red hair. A flash of green eyes. A pointed I-Told-You-So look. A hill, under the shade of a tree, a picnic spread out under it, laughter, smiles, jokes, and-

"Heartless!" I heard a worried woman shout. I heard warning cries as my forgotten memories shattered, beaten back and broken by reality. I opened my eyes, hoping to find the woman who I not-quite hoped would be this 'Rylee.' Perhaps she could give me some insight.

Everyone seemed to vacate the bazaar, most managing to remain calm, others wildly pushing and screaming for help. A few Were almost reluctant to leave, some wanting to test some dagger they bought, or a hammer they'd bartered for. They were ushered away by a woman in a pink dress, convincing them that it wasn't safe, and that while they'd love their help, they weren't trained, and would be of more use if they went through the program- whatever that was.

I searched for the Heartless, and found shadows forming in the middle of the bazaar, like wriggling, growing splotches, blots of darkness, cast from the realm of Darkness into this world of Light, or cuts from the bottom of the world, releasing the Darkness buried under the light.

I saw yellow eyes beginning to take shape, and I had no doubt that soon, Heartless would ooze through the membrane of black energy into this world. I had to stop it. I had no ideas why, no accompanying memories, ideas, or feelings, but I knew that this wasn't going to happen as long as I had power to prevent it.

I heard a solid thud behind me, and I fell forward, falling off of the roof and into a heap on the stone walkway below. I climbed to my feet, and felt something cold in my back, as long as something warm, oozing down my back. I looked up to see the tell-tale grey mist leaking from behind me climbing into the air. I had been wounded.

I reached behind me, and pulled the throwing star free. The blood dripped into my black glove, and I tossed it aside as I glanced up, finding no one there. The building was only three stories tall. I leapt at the building across the street from it, pushing off the wall with my feet, and easily ricocheting to the roof.

I faced down my attacker with a blank expression. She seemed to be wearing attire that someone would work out in, with green wristbands, a green head-band and top, and some extremely short shorts that gave her free range of motion. Her black hair was short and fell in her face on one side, and it bobbed as she bounced around on the balls of her feet. She shrugged her shoulders a few times, grinning as she stretched, presumably preparing for a fight.

"Why did you throw a throwing star at me?" The only way that I could describe the sound of my own voice right now was empty.

She gestured behind me, as she jogged in place. "Hello? Creepy guy, plus hooded cloak, plus Heartless, equals…" She paused, either waiting for an answer, or for effect. I elected to remain quiet. "Bye-bye world." She sounded almost disappointed that I hadn't responded.

My eyebrows knit together, but my face must have been shadowed, because she continued on without another thought. "Ominous guys in black cloaks don't exactly have the best track record here in good old R-G."

I shook my head, slowly, and asked, "Why do you think that I brought them?" she rolled her eyes, and as she finally stopped her perpetual motion, she fell into a crouched battle stance, pulling out another ninja star.

"It's like you guys are trying to insult me!" she muttered this as she launched a ninja star at my face. My sword instantly materialized and I blocked it as well as I could. It clanged off of my sword, spinning past me and over the edge of the roof. Then I felt another solid smack, felt the small thud, and the telltale cool and warmth that foretold the star in my knee. I fell to one knee, and I pulled the star away with one hand, holding my sword defensively. She'd just given me a lesson in how she fought. For every star you see coming, there's at least one more that you don't.

"Call off your Heartless!" She commanded it forcefully, and then I heard a yell far behind me, over a few tiered levels of homes, and I turned to see a blast of dark mist rise to the sky, seemingly encasing a column of flame. "Leon…" I heard the girl whisper as I dropped off of the building, charging towards the explosion, trying to support myself on one good knee, rushing to try and save a world I'd never been to before.


	5. Nothing's Infection

**AN: Wow, this seemed a lot longer while I was writing it. Anyway, here's another chapter, slightly heavier on action, written from my frustration with Kingdom Hearts, Re:chain of Memories' battle system.**

**Rate, review, and submit ideas/OCs. And now, ONWARDS!**

* * *

I only limped so far before I felt two large thuds in my back, larger than that of ninja stars, and I fell forward, two points of pressure keeping my face on the floor, even as my arms worked to get up. Someone was standing on me.

"Oh no you don't," I heard the girl whisper angrily, "Not that easily." I finally put some distance between myself and the road, though, and shook my head.

"You're truly a nuisance," I grunted, straining to get to my feet with a woman on my back. She staggered a little, but maintained her balance until I rolled out from under her, leaving her the one with her face in the pavement. I summoned my sword, and trying to stand, held the point to her throat.

"Go ahead," she snarled, "Kill me. Just like you guys. You all destroy things with abandon, trying to reach one impossible goal or another, destroying happiness, lives, anything, just to-"

"Shut up and let me think, Yuffie." She was stunned that I knew her name, and I was… surprised. But unlike with Rylee—and at the thought of her, I needed to fight to hold back the torrent of memories, even as I longed to experience them again, to learn more about myself—there is no pain, or memories that came with the name. Nothing. She was no one to me, but a black-haired woman with a slightly familiar name.

I shook my head, beginning to realize that it was a habit, and threw back my hood as my sword disappeared. I knelt down, ignoring the feeling of wrongness and the gray wisps of smoke that were coming from my knee.

She gasped, but even so, I asked, "Do you know my face?" I could see tears forming in her eyes, and recognition lighting up behind them. She shook her head as she threw her arms around me.

"Nathan-" she sobbed, "We thought you were dead! After the last attack, we figured- and now you're back, to- Leon's going to-" she gasped again, springing to her feet. "Leon! We need to help him!" She sprinted off, and I shrugged, trying to chase her down. If she wanted to believe that I wasn't Nobody, I wasn't going to stop her. Especially if it kept more metal out of my legs.

I lagged behind almost immediately, and when she glanced back, she sprinted to my side, handing me a small flask of green liquid. I was already drinking it, as I had no real cause to believe that she would try to harm me at this point. Immediately, I felt the sense of wrongness in my knee alleviate, and I tested my weight on it. It didn't feel like anything. So it was definitely an improvement.

I look back at Yuffie to see her already gone, rushing ahead. I begin running after her, trying to keep pace. I struggled, but I managed not to get too far behind her, and not to lose her in the small maze that we were rushing through. Eventually, after many twists and turns, we came to the space that I recognized as the remains of the bazaar. One thing was sure—the Heartless' numbers had grown.

The stalls were all reduced to splinters, the wares strewn about the courtyard, as yellow eyed creatures of all shapes, sizes, and colors roamed the area, many—but not all—engaging a man that looked to be just a couple of years older than me, who was holding an enormous sword, with the rotating barrels of a revolver. He was yelling as he swung about the heavy sword with ease, striking many Heartless down, and destroying just as many with bursts of ice or fire that shot from the end of his blade.

Yuffie had already leapt to his aid, thankfully directing her throwing stars at something other than me, and bouncing between, and sometimes atop, the Heartless, leaping from one spot to the next, untouchable. I grabbed a light wooden kite shield, plated with steel. I slung it on my left arm as I hefted my sword in my right. Then I too joined the fray.

They will NOT take this world.

On the edge of the mob were only the small Heartless, milling about, only noticing me seconds before I engaged them. I sliced my way through many, bashing with the shield when my sword arm was occupied, before they finally began to notice me, the dark mist released clinging to my cloak. I did my best to ignore the hearts that floated skyward. I knew that there would be another time to try and get one of my own, and that this world may not have another chance.

Still, they were tempting, and distracting, until a large Heartless commanded my total attention.

It looked like a spider fused with a man, as a centaur was fused with a man and a horse. It stood on twelve black and red segmented legs, that were so large and sharp that they left large, conical holes wherever it stepped. Its body was a solid black, so dark that smoking wisps of Darkness trailed off of it whenever it moved. It was muscular, inhumanly so, its upper torso was almost bulbous it was so big, and its lower torso almost thin, and lithe. Its face looked like an ungodly amalgam of wolf and man, an elongated snout with enormous fangs, and intelligent yellow human eyes, with a ferocious gleam that was definitely _inhuman_. Its enormous, clawed hands gripped a ragged and beaten old blood red battle-ax, which it swung at me, roaring an earth-shattering roar.

I leapt over the axe, sliding the shield that would only weigh me down off of my arm as I did so. My jump brought me a good ten feet into the air, and I observed as its sideways swipe at me mowed down countless Heartless with reckless abandon, all of them fading into a fine black mist, most releasing Hearts. When I landed, I immediately rolled to the side to avoid a spear-like foot from impaling me, and I then rolled between its legs, underneath the spindly, spider-like body. I began hacking at a leg, trying desperately to dislodge it, and eventually succeeding, the thing falling dead, and slowly fading into a dark, purple mist as the Heartless roared in pain. The Heartless began trying to stab me with its other legs, and I was forced to let my sword dissipate as all of my effort was turned to diving and rolling around the deadly limbs.

I wasn't 100% sure if I was alive without a Heart, but I didn't want to be certain that I was dead.

Eventually though, my body tired out, and I tripped, one of the legs scraping by me, tearing into my cloak, and leaving a ragged red mark in the flesh of my left arm, blood seeping out even as I saw some black sludge fading into it. Was it venom? Poison? No time to think now. I needed to kill the Heartless.

I rolled out from beneath the Heartless, and turned to find its face blasted by a beach-ball sized fireball. A ragged looking Leon and Yuffie were on the other side of it, their many scratches and wounds only serving to make them seem tougher. I summoned my sword, holding it in two hands, and tried to seem as imposing.

The thing's gaze bounced between Leon, Yuffie, and I, and I could see rage building in its eyes. It howled in anger, and I shook as my side exploded with pain, where he'd left the venom. Still though, I stood firm, holding my sword, and ready to act. The Heartless' anger only seemed to grow at this, and it barked loudly. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the few smaller Heartless that Leon and Yuffie hadn't gotten to fade into small black orbs, and those shrink and swirl away. The creature's murderous gaze lingered on me, while it coolly regarded me. Its yellow eyes seemed to be searching for weakness. Finding none in my expression, my teeth grit against the throbbing pain in my side, it growled at Yuffie, who had begun to slowly circle around, and fade into its own enormous orb. It faded far slower than the others, until it was gone.

I managed to hear Leon say with grim determination, "It'll be back soon enough," before I crumpled from the pain, and laying on the floor, convulsing as I was wracked by the burning sensations, the venom eating away at me corrosively.

* * *

**What a place to leave you, eh? Aren't I just the pits?**

**Let me know what you liked, disliked, and ways that I can improve in Reviews, and if you think I should consider something for the story, let me know.**

**Happy FanFic-ing!**

**Monkey Typewriter.**


	6. A Brief History of Nothing

**AN: Sorry, no quote-unquote 'Action' this chapter, but some story development and background info. I'm beginning my own personal 'NaNoWriMo,' seeing as I missed the official one, and am already behind, so probably few updates this month.**

**OCs would be appreciated if sent.**

**Also, please rate, review, and comment. If there's something you dislike, I'll strive to fix or replace it, and any positive reviews would be a huge ego-boost for me, so... hintedy-hint.**

**And as always, Happy FanFic-ing!**

**Monkey Typewriter.**

**P.S.- I seriously need reviews. Without your input, I'm left in the dark. I have a whopping 0 beta readers. This is all straight from the key-board to you, so any negatives or positives you can point out will allow me to improve, and to improve your experience as a reader.**

* * *

I awoke to a thoroughly cluttered room, wondering when I'd fallen asleep. Then the pain wracked me again, and I shuddered, turning to my side. Yuffie's concerned face… was it concern? I think so… yes. It seemed right.

Her concerned face filled my vision. She turned, and I saw her sitting in a (presumably) uncomfortable wooden chair, still bloody, battered, and filfthy, a fine layer of sweat, grime, and dirt drying on her.

"Hurry up, Aerith! He's getting worse!" I heard another voice, feminine and melodious, call from another room, "Almost finished!" Come to think of it, she seemed a little frantic as well.

I opened my mouth to respond, but only managed to shudder some more, and turn to my other side. I coughed, and felt a bit of… wrongness, in my chest. The pain was no worse there, but something didn't feel good. My lungs felt full of something other than air.

"Done!" I heard the voice, Aerith shout, and Yuffie forced me to turn and sit up straight, the strangeness in my lungs shifting as I sat up. Another woman was visible, Aerith, and her pink dress and bow, and well-done hair seemed too fancy for the occasion to a little voice in the back of my head.

"What're you… doing?" It came out a wheeze, when I'd meant to be calm and careful. That Heartless had put me in a bad way, I suppose.

"Curing you," came the answer, and Aerith poured a clear blue liquid down my throat. I nearly gagged on it, but managed to swallow it down. Immediately, I began coughing and hacking, bringing up a lot of water with each body-jarring expulsion, so much so that Aerith ran off and returned with a bucket. I tried to do the polite thing, and thank her, but my mouth refused to do anything but expel the liquid that was in my lungs. So, I did my best to direct it all into the bucket.

"Wow, that sure is a lot…" Yuffie sounded nervous, but I didn't understand why. Aerith left again, wordlessly returning with a bottle of water. At the sight of it, my coughing redoubled itself. I was unsure as to why.

"That's it, Nathan," muttered Yuffie, "Get it all out. You'll feel better soon." I got the idea that someone with emotion would have laughed at this ironic comment. I wouldn't be feeling anything.

Finally, thankfully, I managed to stop my coughing. The burning sensation had receded, and my chest was almost back to its normal state of Nothing.

"What was that?" I asked Aerith, sounding bland. They'd probably attribute it to coming off of feeling so sick.

"Anti-venom," She said, "we're just lucky you had the reaction to it you did. If it had cured the venom, but left your lungs inundated with all of that water, you'd have died soon anyway."

"Lucky then," Yuffie continued, "that Aerith has the best home remedies in any of the worlds out there."

"Thank you," I managed, coughing a little more into my fist. I noticed, for the first time, the outfit that I'd been put in. I immediately had a head-ache, that felt as if the Spider-Wolf Heartless had used his axe to split my skull, and forgot to take it back out.

Images flooded past my mind. I could see myself- no… not me. It was Nathan. Nathan wore the maroon outfit, looking very regal and official, despite the face-splitting grin and messy hair, standing at attention. The outfit was all rough, uncomfortable fabric, but he loved it all the same, wearing it as often as he could, because it marked him as a protector. He shook with pride, even while Leon dismissively told him he didn't need to salute to anyone.

He was the first to pass through Leon's new guard program, training a select few to join him and the others… a man with spiky blonde hair I didn't recognize… Yuffie, and Aerith… to join them in defending the people of Radiant Guardian from Heartless and Nobodies. Nathan had loved and fiercely defended them all, to the best of his ability.

Should I do the same? I'm incapable of love, but protection… perhaps.

I fell back into reality, sprawling on the bed, remembering where I was just as I heard Yuffie crying out, "…t's Wrong with him!?

Aerith didn't respond as I turned, putting my feet on the floor, seeing the black, gleaming rubber boots. I stood, and saw Aerith smile sadly. "We've been saving your uniform, ever since…" she didn't seem able to finish.

Yuffie smiled, glancing apologetically at Aerith. "Yeah. Everyone wanted to cancel the program, but… we can't. Not now. People need to know how to defend themselves, and the more people that can do it, the less we'll lose."

I nodded, considering. "So?" I looked back to Yuffie. She threw up her hands. "You're going to make me ask? Really? Fine…" She groaned aloud, and finally asked, "Will you help us to train them, Nathan? Having you back… the first true person to go through the program… it'd be a huge morale boost, for everyone."

I considered a moment. Staying would prevent me from continuing my search for a Heart of my own. They think I'm something, Somebody I'm not. If they found out the truth, I'd be destroyed. Yuffie seemed set on killing me, until she saw my face.

On the other hand… my memories were returning here, however slowly. Even if they weren't truly mine, they held important information on who I was, and perhaps, how to obtain a Heart. And I seemed to have a base need to defend this world. I can't truly do that from another world, can I?

I realized that I had been considering for at least a full minute. I shook my head, wracking my brain for the most Nathan-esque answer I could find.

"Well," I said with a false uncertainty, "I can't promise long-term…" Yuffie's face fell. "But I can promise you one thing. As soon as you shower, Yuffie, the chances of me running will more than half." Wow. That was a mouthful. But the feelings I'd falsely conveyed came out fairly well. Yuffie scowled, punching me in the arm, and surprisingly, I didn't feel it. Aerith giggled into a hand, and Yuffie scowled at her too, before breaking into a smile.

"You're no rose-bush yourself, Nathan," she chuckled, and I made a face that I hoped conveyed an 'oh well,' shrugging.

This decision was illogical, poorly-informed, and very possibly self-damaging. Perhaps I'm closer to owning a Heart than I thought.


	7. Fighting Nothing

**AN: Someone suggested I try longer chapters, so here you go! Almost 2000 words of my unadulterated fanfiction-ing. ARE YOU HAPPY NOW!? IS THIS WHAT YOU WANTED!? If so, you're welcome.**

**This is a test, and may not be a thing I keep doing (the bigger chapters) so don't get spoiled now. Please Rate and Review, and as always:**

**Happy FanFic-ing!**

**PS- Before I go any further, I'd like to thank asdfadfji (if that is your real name, sir or ma'am!) and XxXionXRoxasxX, for being so cool about submitting a character, and I plan to us them.**

**PPS- Just because I don't use your character doesn't mean I'm not grateful. I'm thankful, as your submission means one of two thingd: that I'm doing something right, in making a story you want to be a part of, or more likely, you, as awesome human beings and robots, are giving me the benefit of the doubt and trusting that it'll get better, and giving your character to me so that they can join in as it starts getting to be less bad.**

**PPPS- Sorry for all the PS-es.**

**PPPPS- Truly, I am.**

* * *

I was allotted a moment's peace each night, by the many residents of Radiant Garden. Many were shocked to see me, many happy, some overjoyed. I didn't remember any of them. I simply smiled at all the right times, nodded at everything true, and filled the space with my own words when the voices stopped reminiscing.

Yuffie thought it prudent to give me time, to, 'get back into the swing of things!' She gave me a week before we started training her recruits, and this was the final night. I had spent most of my time wandering about the large town, and around it, leaping over the walls to explore the heavily cratered wasteland.

I'd even explored the castle, shocked to find a laboratory and a near sentient computer which constantly commanded me either to input the correct code, or to leave it be. I typed a few idle questions, like 'what's your name?' and 'What's going on?', but it ignored these, only telling me that if I didn't know the password, he wouldn't give me any info.

Not knowing much about computers, I elected to stop messing with it, before I broke something. Much of the castle had the feeling of Darkness about it, and I didn't want to release something if I could help it.

I entered the small house where I'd awoken a week earlier to Yuffie and Aerith, both excited to have 'Nathan' back. Not for the first time, I wondered why they wanted my help with the training so much. The reasons they gave seemed sound at the time, but obviously, Yuffie and Leon were well trained martially. Wouldn't I just be a redundancy? And how could someone who had apparently failed in fighting the Darkness, getting swallowed by it, be inspiring to the recruits?

People with Hearts were illogical. Why couldn't they just do what made sense?

I sigh, laying on the bed, and stripping off my red uniform. It… didn't quite _feel_ wrong, but it was as if my mind knew it should be impossible. I shouldn't be wearing anything but the dark cloak, which had somehow mended itself.

I put it on, and my muscles released a tension that I hadn't realized was building. Almost like withdrawal from wearing the coat. I lay on the bed, pondering my position here.

Yuffie had also promised that I wouldn't be just a teacher. I would be used sent on patrols between my classes, defending the town from the darkness. The Heartless spawned more often in the dark, and even if it wasn't a full blown horde of them, like the Spider-Wolf one had lead, they were capable of harming the citizens of Radiant Garden. And I'm told that's bad.

I lay awake in the night, allowing my mind to go blank as I stared at the ceiling. I'd discovered over the week that sleep was unnecessary. I just needed to make it seem like that's what I did, because that's what whole people did. Nobody could tell that my eyes were open in the dark, though, so I simply stared and thought.

_How much will I need to teach? What if they have different weapons than me… how will I teach someone to fight with a bow, or a spear, or… any manner of weapon? Maybe spar with them a lot? Trial and error, until they get it? I suppose. But dueling one person that's holding back, to avoid hurting you, and a horde of Heartless are two entirely different things. Perhaps train them by bringing them with me to fight Heartless… and stepping in if they need help?_

I heard the door open and close, and a whisper penetrated the darkness. "Nathan, you asleep?" It was Yuffie.

"Yes," I murmured, as if almost drifting off to sleep, and added in a hint of grumpiness. I'd gotten better at faking emotions during the week. Despite my best efforts to avoid others, the forced interaction was good for my acting skills. I was best with my voice, as facial expressions are difficult… and I still hadn't quite mastered 'happy.' And my reaction time in picking the right emotion was pitiful, to be honest.

"Alright then," came the sarcastic whisper. "I'll be extra quiet so as not to wake you."

"Good," I muttered into my pillow. _Now… how do I convince anyone that this is a good idea? How am I to know if it's a good idea myself? This would be the first time I did this sort of thing. Is throwing someone into the thick of things like that even okay? Would someone with a Heart think it immoral, or wrong, or cruel?_

I sighed, closing my eyes, and passing out. Sleep _was_ unnecessary… but it did help pass the time, and my body appreciated it, even if I didn't feel it

* * *

I woke up earlier than anyone else in the squat, square home, and stepped over the old, worn books that were spilling out from beneath the bed. I stretched, purely from habit, and began to change out of the black cloak, shoving them under the bed, only making the situation with the many books of varying value and importance, ranging from enormous tomes of spell techniques and such to children books. Yuffie had said Merlin, the homeowner, was an odd one, and he wouldn't be back until he'd properly taught someone magic.

The red uniform was less stiff after repeatedly wearing it for a week, washing every two or three days. I walked out the door, and towards the castle outside of the city, where the training would supposedly commence. I say 'supposedly' because I wasn't entirely sure if the recruits would be able to make it.

A swarm of Heartless had appeared, materializing from globes of darkness not far from the walls of the town, and pulling themselves out of the ground. Most were familiar shapes and sizes, floating, lightly armored ones of all colors, corresponding to their type of magic, the knights with claws, those with swords, the floating beige ones that fired lasers… And many more.

But one kind in particular was new. It was similar to the small shadow ones, but would've been about the size of a man (If it hadn't hunched), and appeared to be well muscled. Instead of the small antennae pointing forwards in a zig-zagging way, they were large, at least four feet each, pointing stiffly behind him. Small purple veins appeared in its otherwise black skin here and there, and its bulging yellow eyes stared at me.

I considered going for help. But surveying the situation, it looked like I could handle it, if I was careful. All of the different Heartless and their behaviors were well known to me, (both from personal experience, and Yuffie drilling them into my head throughout the times she was able to corner me). All but the new one, which regarded me carefully. Odd. Heartless are supposed to be unthinking… acting purely on impulse. But this one appeared to be strategizing.

I couldn't let that bother me. Another problem with going to help would be letting the problem grow, and letting it attack the town un-impeded. That would cost lives, and allow this world to be damaged. No. No, that was not happening.

I summoned my sword, and briskly stalked towards the crowd. They didn't have ranks, or rows, or columns… but if they did, they would have broken them in their rush towards me. Some batted their fellow Heartless aside, others trampled them to get at me. All but the shade. It slowly, cautiously advanced.

I didn't care. I had more pressing matters to deal with. I slashed one of the floating red heartless in half, ignoring the Heart that immediately appeared, the two metallic parts of armor falling and clanging on the ground, before dispersing in a dark mist, following the example of the enormous, round one, the six smaller clawed knights, two knights with swords, eighteen other floating, magic users (of varying size and color), and others that I'd lost count of.

I spun on one foot, running another through, (It melted around my sword) and was blasted off of my feet. The brief flash of orange had told me that it was a fire ball that struck me. I rolled about on the floor, knowing that I wouldn't feel it if I were on fire, but knowing that it should be avoided at all costs.

I jump to my feet, and continue my mad dance of slashing, dodging, stabbing, parrying, and essentially, destruction. Few landed any hits, but when they did, I ignored the smaller ones, and acknowledged that the bigger ones (such as a slash to the knee) would impede my ability to fight on, so every few big injuries, I'd down a green poultice that Aerith had made for me, and fought on.

Eventually, I'd managed to severely reduce the crowd, until five smaller shadows remained, dancing about on the floor, or rushing towards me clumsily, hoping to slice into me with their claws, and the one larger, intelligent one. While I easily dealt with the smaller ones, the larger one waited for the perfect time to strike.

So, not-quite hoping to bait it, I turned my back to it while side-stepping and dispatching a smaller shadow. I turned a second later to find it in the air, hurtling towards me, so I leapt up to meat it, and ran it through, landing atop it as we landed, and climbing off as it shuddered and disappeared.

I was panting from exertion. I must be tired, then. I glanced around, and didn't see anything, so I allow my sword to fade from my hand as I continue to walk towards the castle.

And then, another of the larger black thing climbs from the ground as if it'd just climbed a ladder and was pulling itself into an attic or tree-house. It tried a different tactic, fading into the ground and sprinting at me in two dimensions. I followed the black shape with my eyes as it rushed beneath me, and turned to follow it as it went behind me.

It climbed back out of the ground at the head of an immense army, all of the same Heartless as it. This army, in contrast to the horde of before, appeared to be disciplined. They didn't move an inch, but stood stock still, every pair of eyes staring at me, save for the two familiar faces at the head of it.

It was Me. Well… Nathan. He was smiling exuberantly, and if I hadn't known how easily he could slip into a homicidal rage (at the simple suggestion of a disembodied voice, no less), I would have thought that he was a truly happy man, rather than excitedly preparing for my death.

And he stood alongside the elderly man. The one that had tried to tempt me with a Heart. The one who had tried to kill me. I knew that seeing these two antagonistic men would make a normal person unhappy, angry, even, so I tried to look as angry as I could. It was good practice.

"Yo, Handsome!" Nathan yelled it from his far off position, cupping his hands to be heard."Me and the old man have a bet, okay? So, if you could die in less than five minutes, that's be great! I really want one of those key-things, and I'd prefer not to lose my soul to an old fart like him."

While I tried to decipher precisely what he's said, and Xehanort's confident grin turned into an angry grimace, Nathan snapped his fingers, and the shades rushed towards me.


	8. Nothing's All

**AN: I know, it's way late, and it's not as long as last chapter, but like I said, Camp NaNoWriMo preparation, School year ending, other stories, etc... I just needed to upload something, and this is semi-important. Plus, I introduce one of my favorite characters in the games into this chapter. Hope you enjoy it!**

**One more quick thing; expect next chapter to be late as well. I'm still devoting a lot of time to other projects (wow, that makes me sound almost PRODUCTIVE!) and while I promise this won't take a back-seat per-se, it may be the one sitting in the middle seat, with two large gorillas occupying the seats on either side. What I'm saying is, it might be hard to get around to.**

* * *

I was unsure of what to do, with the Heartless bearing down on me. Retreat was a plausible option, but I didn't know the landscape behind me, nor did I know the castle. It would make chasing and surrounding me easier, as I would be guessing and running wherever I could.

On the other hand, if I stood and fought, I would be facing almost certain destruction. Their army was vast, Nathan and I were fairly evenly matched in a one-on-one duel, and the elderly man, Xehanort, added an unknown X-factor. What could he do? What _WOULD _he do?

Still, facing the threat head on held a certain appeal. I summoned the sword to my hand, and it materialized in its usual flash of light. I let a false smile flash across my face, hopefully to make Nathan and Xehanort somewhat nervous. And I waited for the charging army.

They were far more organized than the horde of before. They immediately surrounded me, maintaining a circle that was perfect, all a few feet from me, almost suggesting a hive mind between them. I saw the strange shadows recoil in time with the scream from Nathan.

"BORING! Attack him, you useless sacks of shadow, before I lose my bet!" I saw him pull up his black cloak, checking a watch on his wrist. "There's only a minute left, or I don't get that key!" Still, the shades were hesitant, eyeing me with their bulbous yellow spot-lights. I felt as much as I heard the light pad, a single footfall as one of them charged, and I spun, catching the Heartless on my blade. It impaled itself on my blade with its own momentum, and shuddered as it reached a claw to my face, dissipating just as its claws brushed my cheek.

Then I heard a small thunder as all of them leapt forward at once, and the sky was blotted out with yellow flashes and a solid black bubble. I couldn't fight them, and I knew that. At least, not by myself.

What I did next was instinctual. The world seemed to slow down as I crouched, slamming the hilt of my sword into the ground, and immediately, white and grey thorns shot from the ground, stabbing through all of the Heartless, who twitched and shivered as they dissipated in a large cloud of black mist.

I immediately began to shudder with the effort. I couldn't catch my breath, and my hand immediately found my side. That must've taken a lot out of me. I stood back up as well as I could, shivering from the effort, and leveled my sword at Nathan and Xehanort as best as I could. My arm began shuddering horribly though, and I saw my red uniform melt away, transforming back into my black robes, the gleaming buttons, deep red cloth, and the comfortable fit of my uniform immediately washed away, and replaced with the cloak I'd begun my 'existence' in.

And then I felt a strange tingling beginning in my fingers, and slowly spreading up my arms, and filling me with the strange feeling. Black flecks began to shed from the cloak and gloves, until my arms were bare. But that wasn't the end. The gray smoke began to billow out, streaming away from me in great amounts, as more black flecks were stripped from my very skin.

"No," I muttered, glancing from my hands to Nathan and Xehanort. Nathan was miming my own movements, glaring from his watch to me, muttering to himself and likely hoping I'd dissolve before the five minute mark was reached. Xehanort confidently stood beside him, and stepped backward, into a black portal, fading from existence. Much the same as what I was doing, save for the fact that my disappearance would likely be permanent.

"No, no no no…" I tried to focus on my hands, willing them to reassemble as I still slowly spiraled away, in a cloud of smoke and ash. My hands were completely gone, and my forearms began to disperse as well. "No, I don't want to fade!" I shouted this, and I was shocked to recognize genuine emotion; I was afraid, and I wanted to continue existing. I didn't want to die.

I was afraid. My shivering resumed, and I dropped to my knees, sobbing. Nathan was running towards me, his black sword in hand. "I have ten seconds, so let's make this quick!" He made to cut off my head cleanly and easily, smirking at me. My eyes close, and I inhaled a shuddering breath. I uttered a silent prayer, _let it be fast._

But instead of the release of death, leaving behind a corpse—or more likely, a cloud of grey mist—I heard the sharp _clang_ of metal on metal, and opened my now tearing eyes to see a man standing in front of me lazily turning back Nathan's attack, and sending him stumbling backward. He was wearing a dark cloak like mine, but he was older, taller, and his hair jutted out behind him, like a fiery red lion's mane. The man seemed almost bored as Nathan shot me a murderous look, disappearing into his own black portal.

I felt a hand drag me to my feet. "Never put your all into one attack," snarled the red-headed man, his eyes boring into me, analyzing me, and I imagined, trying to see if I was a lost cause. "Alright, focus now! Focus on your memories, what you were before. They're your only anchor to existence, and they're your only hope!"

I tried. I focused on all I'd remembered. The picnic. The shadows. The girl, Rylee. The Darkness. Yuffie's name. The pain when I was stabbed. The uniform, the sword. The mirror, my reflection, my opposite, the old man, the darkness, I'm fading, I'm going, I don't have a chance, I-

My face stung, and I looked to see the man raising his hand to strike again. My arms had slowed their disappearance, but they were still going. I closed my eyes, and remembered.

A shock of red hair. A flash of green eyes. A pointed I-Told-You-So look. A hill, under the shade of a tree, a picnic spread out under it, laughter, smiles, jokes, and the shadows came. I pulled out my sword. My arms tickle. Maybe I should open my eyes? No. Not now.

I tried to fight off the Heartless, but they wouldn't stop. I grab her hand. We run for the walls of the city, shouting, begging for help. Yuffie, a few years younger, tries to cover us with throwing stars, and also takes up the call for help. She trips. I try to pull her back up, try to drag her to the wall while fighting off the Heartless, try to keep us both alive, keep us both moving.

She pulls out of my grasp. I turn just in time to see her scream and disappear in a dark cloud, and I roar in pain and anger and frustration and loss, and I charge, I charge the enormous mob of Heartless that I can't beat, and-

My eyes opened, but the world around me was no less dark. I was in the Realm of Darkness again. Then I truly opened my eyes, abandoning the memory, and see the last fleck of my body and my cloak re-form. I sigh in relief, and immediately collapse.


End file.
